I attended several hours of the “environmental” hearing and saw that the speakers while I was there were mainly people related to construction trades and others with a vested economic interest in the project and with little or no concern for the environmental impact of the project.
I applaud Supervisor Murray for her courage in standing up to these interests despite the threat of political consequences.
I am not an environmental expert but a nearly lifetime resident of Nassau and a 13-year resident of Garden City. I have reviewed the DGEIS and can see that impacts on such matters as water, sewage and traffic will be negative and severe.
Without being an expert, it’s obvious to me that the developer’s vision for Nassau is to change what’s left of our suburban environment into the density and, from my perspective, less desirable and certainly different environment that I think of when I think of Queens. Some people love the “hustle and bustle” of the areas I’m thinking of and so they choose to live there. I love the comparative serenity of the Nassau I have lived in for almost my entire life and see being transformed. We need to cherish and preserve our open space.
As I walked to Adams Hall for the hearing, I was struck by the beauty of the Hofstra campus and thought that it could serve as a model for the proper scale of the density which should be allowed at the Hub location. Can someone provide a comparison so that people like me can have a point of reference for the proposed project?
I know I echo the feelings and concerns of many of my friends and neighbors.
Ben Mahler
